The end of the year has brought a new beginning for Strikeforce, and the promotion’s first major event in three months brings two title bouts with two champions who have a chance to further solidify their dominance.

If both champs win Saturday at “Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal,” it won’t come as much of a surprise. But it will prompt the question: What’s next?

“Strikeforce: Meldendez vs. Masvidal” takes place at Valley View Casino Center in San Diego. The event’s main card airs on Showtime at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT.

With six to eight Strikeforce events headed to Showtime in 2012, you could certainly make the argument that continuity in championships is helpful to the promotion’s cause as it attempts to put itself on equal footing with its sister promotion, UFC. If Melendez and Santos are able to dominate on Saturday, they could be a rallying point for fans who want to see their title runs continue unabated, similar to what Urijah Faber was able to do for the now-defunct WEC.

But it’s also possible that in ruling their respective divisions that the champs could underscore a lack of depth in Strikeforce’s roster. In Melendez’s case, he fights a tough challenger largely unknown to even to close followers of the sport – and certainly those who primarily watch the UFC. Masvidal is not only the best offering at the moment, he’s one of the only credible ones. If he wins on Saturday, it will stop a huge wave of momentum Melendez has built in the past two years.

And if Melendez wins, it’s hard to see any challenges on the horizon that promise a tough challenge. He’s already dispatched Josh Thomson to win the lightweight belt – in their second meeting – and defended against DREAM champion Shinya Aoki and notable Tatsuya Kawajiri. A lightweight such as Justin Wilcox might be the only homegrown talent who could make a good argument for a title shot.

Masvidal has already bested K.J. Noons and Billy Evangelista, who meet in the first bout of Saturday’s main card.

With Santos, it’s without question that the challenges in her division remain slim. She readily dispatched Marloes Coenen and Jan Finney after she won the women’s featherweight title by beating up Gina Carano, and in Yamanaka, she meets a fighter who most have already written off. (One recent line put had her as a -1,000 favorite.) Until she decided to move to bantamweight to challenge champ Miesha Tate, Ronda Rousey was a clear successor to Yamanaka, who brings an eight-fight win streak into her title shot. The great task for Strikeforce is signing more talent as next year gets underway.

Could Yamanaka and Masvidal win? Without a doubt. Yamanaka brings a sizable height advantage into the bout and has long arms to throw straight punches at an advancing Santos. Her defensive grappling is sound, and perhaps most importantly, she’s aggressive. Masivdal, meanwhile, is a technician when it comes to counterpunching in exchanges and has sharpened an ability to stay on his feet, which is bound to come in handy against a ground-and-pound guy such as the lightweight champ.

Of course, Melendez wouldn’t be champ if he weren’t so adept at taking opponents off their feet, and what Santos lacks in technical ability, she more than makes up for it in pure ferocity inside the cage. These are the primary reasons they enjoy such a betting lead.

But even if they’re not successful, it’s important to keep in mind that the promotion’s fate doesn’t rest entirely on whether the lightweight and women’s featherweight champion win on Saturday. Even with the end of the Strikeforce heavyweight division in sight, there are six divisions to promote with several exciting prospects. Three title belts remain vacant, and the conclusion of the heavyweight grand prix is near. Parent company Zuffa is committed to making the brand work, and new stars will emerge.

However, it’s hard to imagine the loss of two fighters in which so much has been invested is a positive thing in the short term, especially since the promotion’s biggest stars (Nick Diaz, Jake Shields, Dan Henderson, Alistair Overeem and Cung Le) have already been folded into the UFC. And with a year and a half-dozen events or more to make a good impression, it’s imperative that Showtime, Strikeforce and its parent company Zuffa work fast.

In other main-card action, former light-heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi (31-3-2 MMA, 2-1 SF) meets Ovince St. Preux (11-4 MMA, 4-0 SF). It’s Mousasi’s first bout since a disappointing draw with Keith Jardine in April, after which he rebounded with a quick TKO victory in Japan. St. Preux brings an eight-fight win streak into the cage and wrestling skills he’s all but certain to employ against a seasoned kickboxer such as Mousasi.

Additionally, Noons (10-4 MMA, 2-2 SF) and Evangelista (11-1 MMA, 7-1 SF) hope to realign for a shot at the winner of Saturday’s lightweight title bout. Noons returns after suffering back-to-back losses for the first time in his career – a decision loss to former welterweight champ Diaz followed by another points loss to Masvidal. Evangelista, a homegrown Strikeforce fighter, is back on the horse after he suffered the first loss of his career to Masvidal. Built up gradually over the course of five years, Evangelista has taken a steep step up in competition as of late.

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.